FAFSA website 'unavailable' error for 3 days straight - anyone else locked out?

yea its down for alot of ppl rn. i got the same error since monday nite. some ppl in my dorm got thru using their phones but i tried that 2 and still nothing. probly maintenance but they should tell us how long!!

This is a known issue right now. FSA is doing database maintenance that was supposed to end yesterday but got extended. The official status page (studentaid.gov/status) should show the outage, but sometimes they don't update it promptly. A few things to try: 1. Try accessing between 4-6am Eastern time when server load is lowest 2. Use the mobile app instead of the website 3. Try a completely different device on a different network (like your phone data instead of WiFi) The system should be fully operational within 24-48 hours according to their Twitter account. Don't panic about your deadline yet - when they have extended outages like this, schools are usually understanding about deadline extensions.

I had the exact same problem last week! After getting nowhere for days, I used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual FAFSA agent on the phone. Basically it holds your place in the phone queue and calls you when an agent is available. Saved me hours of waiting on hold. The agent told me my account was flagged for a security review (totally random) which was causing the website errors, and she fixed it while I was on the phone. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ

FAFSA website has been GARBAGE this entire application cycle!! This is my third year applying and it's never been this bad. My entire SAI calculation was wrong for 6 weeks and I couldn't get anyone to fix it until my financial aid office intervened. The new simplified FAFSA is anything BUT simplified. They rushed out a half-baked system with zero testing and now millions of students are paying the price. I'm so DONE with this broken system!!

Have you checked if your browser extensions might be causing issues? I had a similar problem and it turned out my adblocker was messing with the FAFSA site. Also try incognito/private browsing mode.

Financial aid advisor here. This is a widespread issue affecting many applicants right now. The Department of Education is aware and working on it. A few important points: 1. Document all your attempts to access the system (screenshots with dates/times) 2. Email your school's financial aid office ASAP to notify them of the issue 3. Most schools will work with you on deadlines if the issue is with the federal system 4. The FSA Information Center (1-800-433-3243) can sometimes push an account reset that resolves access issues The current maintenance window is scheduled to end tomorrow at 6am Eastern. After that, try clearing your cache completely, restarting your device, and accessing from a fresh browser session. If problems persist, your school's financial aid office can often submit an override request on your behalf.

maybe ur FSA ID got locked? happened to my gf when she tried logging in too many times. had to wait 30 mins then request a reset code

Just wanted to provide an update - the Department of Education just released a statement that the maintenance has been extended until Saturday morning due to "database migration issues." They're also automatically extending priority filing deadlines at participating schools by one week to accommodate the outage. Check your school's financial aid website or contact them directly to confirm if they're participating in the extension.

its working for me now! just got in and finished my app. try again maybe????

So glad to hear you got in and everything is working now! I had a similar issue last month where the site was down for maintenance and I was panicking about deadlines. For anyone else still having trouble, I've found that the FAFSA site tends to work better early in the morning (like 6-8am) when there's less traffic. Also, if you're still getting errors, try switching from WiFi to mobile data or vice versa - sometimes it's a network routing issue. The key is not to panic about deadlines when it's clearly a system-wide problem. Financial aid offices are usually very understanding about these technical issues since they affect so many students at once.

Just wanted to chime in as someone who went through this exact same nightmare last year! The FAFSA outages seem to happen every year around peak filing time, which is so frustrating when you're already stressed about deadlines. A few additional tips that helped me: 1) If you have access to a computer at your school's library or computer lab, try from there - sometimes it's an ISP-specific routing issue. 2) Keep a backup list of all your financial documents ready so when the site does come back up, you can fill everything out quickly before it potentially goes down again. 3) Consider starting a group chat with classmates also filing FAFSA - we shared real-time updates on when the site was working. Really glad to see Mohammed got through and finished his application! This community is so helpful during these stressful times.